About this material

Loose parts are open materials with no set purpose, such as stones, shells, sticks, rings, spools, bottle caps and lengths of cloth, that can be moved, combined and taken apart again. Children everywhere have always built and played with what lies around them, and in 1971 the artist Simon Nicholson named the idea. The fewer rules a material carries, the more a child can invent with it.

Invitations

• Baskets of wood rounds, spools, rings, stones, acorns, pinecones and shells on a low shelf for self-serve.
• Tinker trays with sections of small pieces for arranging patterns and pictures.
• Loose parts on a mirror, a light table or a wood frame for making temporary art.
• Big loose parts outdoors, such as crates, planks, tires, tubes, pipes, stumps and fabric.
• Loose parts in the mud kitchen and sand area for cooking, filling and building.
• Containers, scoops and bags for carrying and transporting pieces from place to place.
• Metal pieces such as tins, lids, chains and washers for sound and shine.
• Fabric pieces of many sizes for wrapping, enveloping and hiding.
• Loose parts with clothespins and a rope line between two posts.
• Natural pieces gathered nearby set beside photos of where they came from.
• A family loose parts collection where each family adds something from home.
• Loose parts with clay, playdough or blocks.
• For twos and threes, larger pieces to fill, dump, carry and line up.
• Loose parts on black felt and on white board side by side, so children see how pieces stand out on each.
• A one-color collection, such as everything blue from the garden and the art shelves, for a week of arranging.
• Loose parts in warm colors on one tray and cool colors on another, for patterns and mixing.
• Natural loose parts on gray slate and brown kraft paper to show subtle colors.
• Loose parts in every class atelier in labeled jars, changed with children's interests.
• For threes and fours, a few collections with clear trays for arranging.
• For fours, fives and TK, loose parts for maps, patterns and stories drawn and photographed.

Together or alone

Both. A child alone can arrange the same pieces again and again. Big outdoor parts need teamwork to lift, carry and build. A child alone with a tinker tray can arrange and rearrange for a long time.

Good to know

Check every piece for size, edges and splinters, and keep small pieces out of twos and threes. Sort collections into clear or natural baskets and change them over time based on what we observe so the space stays fresh. Wash shells and stones, dry wood pieces well and return natural parts to the garden when they wear out. Choose a few rich collections. Store them in clear jars and baskets, sorted by color and material.

The child's role

• Choose pieces and decide what they become.
• Carry pieces between areas and return them.
• Sort and organize collections by their own rules.
• Photograph or draw what they made before it changes.
• Help gather new pieces on walks and from home.
• Teach friends a pattern or a build they invented.
• Choose a black or white background and say what changes.
• Gather pieces for a one-color collection.

Closing it together

Children sort loose parts back into their baskets and jars by their own rules or by the photo label on each one. They carry pieces home from other areas and sweep up stray small bits with a child-sized dustpan. Each basket has a clear place on a low shelf, so the close is part of play and the area is ready for tomorrow.

Your presence

Sit near the child at their level and watch for a while before you speak. Describe what you see, such as You put the round ones in a line, and leave their arrangement as it is. Stay calm when pieces travel to other areas, since carrying is part of the play.

Wondering alongside

• I notice you lined them up. I wonder what comes next.
• How do they look on the black cloth?
• It reminds me of a path in the garden.
• Tell me about your pattern.
• What do you see that makes you say that?

Ways it can grow

1. Offer a few collections and watch how children use them.
2. For twos and threes, offer large pieces in baskets for filling, dumping and carrying.
3. Notice what children do, such as carrying, lining up or enclosing, and add pieces that support it.
4. Add containers and bags for transporting.
5. Add mirrors, frames and trays for temporary art.
6. Add large outdoor parts such as crates, tires and planks.
7. Combine loose parts with other materials such as clay, blocks and fabric.
8. Photograph creations and make a book of children's ideas.
9. Sort collections with children and let them name the categories.
10. Look at sculptures made from thousands of everyday objects by Tara Donovan in books and large prints.
11. Invite families to add pieces from home with a short note about each one.
12. Use loose parts for counting, patterns, stories and maps.
13. Arrange loose parts on black and white backgrounds and photograph both.
14. Build one-color collections and warm or cool trays for a week at a time.
15. Draw arrangements from observation with pencil on clipboards.
16. Combine loose parts with clay, wire and paper for mixed media pieces.
17. Keep loose parts open across every area of the room.

Every child

For a child who seeks more, offer heavy outdoor parts such as stumps, tires and crates to roll and carry, and metal parts that clink and shine.

For a child who finds it too much, offer a single tray with a few smooth natural pieces on a black cloth, in a quiet spot.

Connected cards

Natural materials, Found and recycled sculpture, Blocks, Light table, Mirrors, Carrying and transporting, Collecting and treasure, Hiding and enclosing

What you need

A basket of safe household and natural pieces such as lids, spools, clothespins, wooden spoons, fabric scraps, stones and pinecones. A tray or a mirror.

Ways to try it

• Make pictures and patterns on a tray or mirror.
• Fill and dump pieces from containers.
• Build a house for a toy with whatever is in the basket.
• Collect pieces on a walk and add them.
• Arrange pieces on a dark towel and then on white paper and compare.

Your child's role

Your child decides what each piece is for. They can help collect, sort and put pieces away. Your child can sort the pieces back into their baskets and decide which basket each thing belongs in. Small baskets and a low shelf make it easy.

Wonder together

• I wonder how many ways we could sort these.
• How do they look on the dark towel?
• Tell me about what you made.

What your child is learning

Creativity, sorting and problem solving with simple things. Sorting, arranging and carrying small and big pieces helps children use their hands and judge space.

Bring it to school

Send in safe loose parts from home, such as wood spools, lids or fabric pieces, with a note about where they came from. If your program tracks family participation hours, this counts toward them.

Good to know

Keep small pieces away from babies and young children. Check for sharp edges and splinters.